Bas-reliëfs van Bacchus, Achilles met de dochters van Lycomedes en het oordeel van Paris before 1873

Joseph Cundall crafted these bas-reliefs depicting Bacchus, Achilles, and the Judgment of Paris, capturing classical themes in miniature. Look at the shield in the image of Achilles. It isn't merely a piece of armor; it's a stage upon which narratives of power and protection play out. This motif echoes through time, appearing on the Etruscan shields and in medieval tapestries, each iteration reflecting the anxieties and aspirations of its era. In Freudian terms, the shield becomes a form of defense and a symbol of the ego. Consider the Judgment of Paris at the bottom, where we see the act of choosing, the burden of decision. This scene reverberates through art history, appearing in Renaissance paintings and Baroque sculptures, each capturing the tension and consequences of choice. The emotional weight of this moment—the desire, the jealousy, the potential for conflict—engages us on a subconscious level, tapping into our own experiences of decision-making. These symbols—the shield, the judgment—are not static; they evolve, resurface, and take on new meanings, always engaging with the viewer in a dialogue between past and present.